The Latest

Read Full Digest Here: March 9th, Digest This week, the Senate passed a major Criminal Justice bill:  SB 323 - Juvenile Court - Jurisdiction (Youth Charging Reform Act) - passed 32-12 and was sent to the House for consideration.  See last week’s Digest for a description of the bill. Also, two bills on our “watch” list were reported out of committee: Climate Change : HB 437 - Transportation - Major Highway Capacity Expansion Projects and Impact Assessments (Transportation a

Read our Full Digest here: March 2, 2026 Digest Five more significant bills passed the House of Delegates this week, one related to health care and four emergency bills related to federal immigration policies and practices: HB 372 - Hospitals - Emergency Pregnancy-Related Medical Conditions – Procedures – This bill would require hospitals to conduct screening on a patient presenting at an emergency department to determine whether the patient has an emergency pregnancy-rela

Read Full Digest here: February 23, 2026 Digest This past week, four (4) of our health and immigration priority bills were brought to a vote in House Committees and were voted out favorably. HB 372 - Hospitals - Emergency Pregnancy-Related Medical Conditions – Procedures – received a Favorable Report (no amendments) from the Health Committee – SB 169, its companion bill, already passed the Senate last week 32-11. HB 351 - Public Safety - Federal Agents - Digital Unmasking

Read Full Digest Here: Feb. 16th Digest On Thursday, the House of Delegates gave final approval to SB 245 - Public Safety - Immigration Enforcement Agreements – Prohibition , so it will now go to the Governor for signature.  The bill had to obtain 3/5 vote in both houses as an emergency bill, allowing it to go into effect upon the Governor’s signature.  The Senate required 29 votes and passed 32-12; the House required 84 votes and passed 99-38. Shortly thereafter, its compan

Read Full Digest Here: February 9, 2026 Digest With the Senate deadline to file bills on Monday, February 9 (today), and the House deadline on Friday, February 13, a few more priority bills were introduced last week. Any bills introduced after these deadlines will be referred to the chambers’ respective Rules Committees, requiring a vote of those bodies before referral to a standing committee. Late bills are less likely to get a hearing during the session since a third of the

Read Full Newsletter Here: Feb. 2, 2026 Digest Over the weekend we had our 20th Annual Legislative Kickoff; out of an abundance of caution, the event was held virtually. While Rev. Nancy McDonald Ladd had enthusiastically accepted our request to be our Keynote speaker, she had to pull out due to a house fire the weekend before the kickoff. Rev. Dr. Fred Muir, who was leading the centering and worship, did an incredible job explaining UULM-MD's origin story and humble beginni

Read Full Newsletter Here: Digest January 26, 2026 On Wednesday, January 21st, the Governor was required to submit his budget for consideration by the Senate and House of Delegates.  Three budget bills were introduced and referred to the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee and House Appropriations Committee.  For more, see below. Meanwhile, the number of bills introduced increased last week, and bill hearings are beginning in earnest.  Note: Every year, Maryland has to pass

Read Full Newsletter Here: January 19, 2026 Digest On Wednesday, January 14, the Maryland Senate and House of Delegates convened for their 90-day session with a few new lawmakers who were sworn in to serve the remainder of terms for those who left for other positions.  Bill Ferguson (D-46) was unanimously re-elected Senate President and Jocelyn Peña-Melnyk (D-21) was unanimously re-elected Speaker of the House of Delegates.   This year, a total 233 bills and resolutions were

Read Full Newsletter Here: January 13, 2026 Digest On Wednesday, January 14, the Maryland Senate and House of Delegates will convene for its 90-day session with significant changes in the leadership of the House of Delegates. On December 16, they convened for a Special Session and unanimously elected Delegate Joseline Peña-Melnyk as the new Speaker of the House, replacing Adrienne Jones (Maryland’s first woman Speaker and first Black Speaker) who stepped down from the positi

Dear Advocate: Thank you for helping Maryland make significant progress in health as a UULM-MD Advocate.  In our 20 years, we have concentrated on: ·        Working to achieve universal access to affordable quality health care primarily with the Health Care for All! Coalition (HCAC) from our start. ·        Working with HCAC to implement and expand the Affordable Care Act (ACA) including decreasing uninsured individuals in half to 6% with over 400,000 gaining insuranc

Read Full Article Here: Criminal Justice Reform Update January 14th (The Second Wednesday) is fast approaching and our Maryland Legislature will again begin 90 busy days to introduce bills to make new laws or improve existing ones.. This is an important time for Unitarian Universalists (UUs) to get involved and support legislation that aligns with our values. The Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministry of Maryland (UULM-MD) has been a key player in this process for twen

Check Out Full Newsletter Here: Climate Change Update We are continuing our End of Year Fundraising Campaign by highlighting Climate Change. Over the next few weeks, we will continue to highlight our issues and learn more about each issue's speaker for the Legislative Kickoff on January 31st.  We are still asking UUs to oppose the "Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2025" ( H.R. 38  /  S. 65 ), which could override our statewide "concealed carry" gun laws. I

Read Full Newsletter Here: Gun Violence Prevention 2026 We are continuing our End of Year Fundraising Campaign by highlighting Gun Violence Prevention. Over the next few weeks, we will continue to highlight our issues and learn more about each issue's speaker for the Legislative Kickoff on January 31st.  We are currently asking UUs to oppose the "Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2025" ( H.R. 38  /  S. 65 ), could override our statewide "concealed carry" gu

Read Full Article Here: UULM-MD December 2nd, 2025 Immigration Update Giving Tuesday is a global generosity movement, unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world. It strives to build a world in which the catalytic power of generosity is at the heart of the society we build together, unlocking dignity, opportunity, and equity around the globe. People can show their generosity in a variety of ways during Giving Tuesday—whether i

Read Full Article Here: https://prod.cdn.everyaction.com/emails/van/TSM/TSMUU/1/106704/REPN2pSC_bCB245i_G22u4Yy1itlDOh-tOQLx4X0d2K_archive 2026 UULM-MD Legislative Kickoff This year's kickoff will be on January 31st, 2025 at the UU Church of Annapolis and online. In addition to planning for the upcoming General Assembly, this is our 20th Legislative Kickoff and we will be looking back at our 20 years of activism in Maryland. Please use the button below to purchase tickets. Sp

Read Full Article Here: https://prod.cdn.everyaction.com/emails/van/TSM/TSMUU/1/106704/hDqQv5DT_-RtEAhTn0GexQ4oQfxjZKkaA1o7GoV6zSB_archive In the current climate, many people have questions about federal changes to health care in Maryland, enrollment in health coverage, consumer protections for insurance, and access to vaccines.   We, as well as our friends and family, will be affected by the devastating changes and proposals of the Federal government on health care.  Since U

As autocracy continues to exert more and more control of our Federal Government, many UUs are scrambling to find ways to resist and to protect those targeted by the Chief Executive. Some sign every petition, attend every rally, and write every letter that every organization requests. But trying to do everything asked of you can lead to burnout and discouragement if some things don’t go the way you had hoped. We suggest that you look at your own interests and capabilities, the

Share Link: https://prod.cdn.everyaction.com/emails/van/TSM/TSMUU/1/106704/aHcfw4EwvJWqXJ1ddnO_J3Q0bgLmLYLpHPAHhMub3RO_archive A lot more Marylanders have become more active in governmental affairs this year due to the new Federal Administration in Washington, and many are working with faith groups, congregations and other nonprofits. As a result, there appears to be considerable confusion about how nonprofits and their members can be involved in advocacy, electoral work, and

Share Link: https://prod.cdn.everyaction.com/emails/van/TSM/TSMUU/1/106704/NZculm6vhon_alvuLVE6nylm063_USTa7v3hChFy7YJ_archive Thank you for your support. Our mission is to influence the makers of public policy in MD to ensure that our immigrant neighbors are supported, protected and afforded the rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. Support takes the form of providing access to affordable health care, providing a safe environment when someone is reporting a crime or is

Read Full Digest Here: Last Monday, April 7, at midnight, the General Assembly adjourned “sine die” (with no appointed date to reconvene...